Can you tell me about ToolTalk objects?

ToolTalk objects are somewhat different from what you normally encounter in typical object-oriented languages.

Otypes and inheritance are for implementation only. Two specs can be of the same otype but have different properties — they only share the operations as defined by the signatures in the otype declaration. For each signature in the otype declaration, a ptype must be designated. The designated ptype (process-type) is the 'execution engine' for this operation on an object of this otype. The file part of a spec is similar to a required property: every spec must have a file name; however, that file does not need to exist. The filename part of the spec performs several functions, including:

1. Allows you to specify the host and partition on which the spec will be stored.

2. Provides a grouping mechanism for objects.

3. Allows the ToolTalk-enhanced standard operating commands (such as the ttmv command) to keep the database's view of the world consistent with the real world.